


Sinning with Faith

by permanent_emo_phase



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Devil's Nest, Edward Elric Is A Little Shit, F/F, F/M, Implied Sexual Content, LGBTQ Female Character, Mental Anguish, Mental Health Issues, Original Character(s), Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Protective Roy Mustang, Rewrite, Sad with a Happy Ending, They/Them Pronouns for Envy (Fullmetal Alchemist)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:08:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24526627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/permanent_emo_phase/pseuds/permanent_emo_phase
Summary: Elyza has never been a good listener. A rebel from birth, she runs away from home at sixteen and ends up joining the military.  Through an unfortunate series of events, Elyza is thrown from the life she built and ends up in a bar called the Devil's Nest.  One day when the sky is overcast, her avaricious boss acts out his newest scheme and it rocks Elyza's world to its core.  Can she pick up the pieces in time?********This is a rewrite of a fan-fiction called The Burning Rose that I wrote several years ago and posted to Fanfiction.net under the name LynieLu. I feel like I have grown as a writer since then and I want to revive my favorite OC. I hope you all enjoy it.********Update: June 9, 2020 | On hiatus because I tripped and fell into the BNHA fandom and my mind is only thinking about my babies in Class 1-A. But, I'll come back to this.... eventually. :3
Relationships: Edward Elric/Winry Rockbell, Greed/Original Character(s), Lan Fan/Ling Yao, Martel/Original Character, Mei Chan | May Chang/Alphonse Elric, Olivier Mira Armstrong/Buccaneer, Riza Hawkeye/Roy Mustang
Kudos: 3





	1. The Girl in the Alley

As the young girl ran down the street of Dublith, she held her right side in pain. Blood squirted out from between her fingers and she knew she couldn't do this much longer. Her vision was beginning to fade to black around the edge of her eyes and her trembling body screamed in protest every time she picked up her feet. No matter how strong the pain became, she knew she had to keep moving. If she stopped, those damned military dogs would catch her again and there was no telling what would happen to her. She couldn't take the chance and find out. All this running was not only making her bleed more, but it was sapping her strength. Her normal way of running was now just sloppy jogging. Still, she was ahead of them. But for how long?

As the little lizard chimera watched the chase from a distance, his heart of gold took pity on the girl. Even from this far away, he could see the sun glittering in the tears on her face. The men chasing her were obviously military which confused the little lizard man.

"What would the military want her for?" Bido asked the open air as he watched.

The girl turned a corner and nearly fell as she stumbled. She threw her free hand down and did a flip before continuing to run. It was clear that her little stunt hurt her more though as she began to slow down. Bido realized if he didn't act fast, he'd never get his answer. He slithered into an alleyway ahead of the chase and waited. As expected, it wasn't long before the girl ran by. She'd gained a little distance, so she took a moment to catch her breath. She bent over in pain and panted in exhaustion.

"Hey! Hey!"

She looked up and saw the short man who was dressed in rags and barefooted. She couldn't see much of his face, but she could see how wide and innocent his eyes were.

"Come over here and I'll help you. Hurry before they catch up." Bido offered.

Naturally, anyone who be a little hesitant to accept help from such an unusual looking stranger. Was that a tail or was she just suffering from blood loss? Still, his voice was so concerned and his eyes were overflowing with worry. Maybe he was trustworthy.

"Please, come with me, miss. Please, I'll help you escape." he pleaded.

She looked unsure, but as the voice of one of her attackers rang out through the dusty air like a gunshot, she knew that her mind had made up for her. She ran into the alley and ducked behind a large dumper with the chimera. The men ran by and she sighed in relief before sitting back against the wall.

"Thanks. You really saved my ass back there." she said.

Bido smiled until she moved her hand away from her side and blood poured from her side. His eyes filled with tears.

"Oh no. You're hurt. If I'd known that, I would have hurried. I'm sorry." he said sadly as he hung his head in shame.

"If you'd hadn't showed up with you did, they would have killed me. Don't apologize." she said, weakly.

"My friends can probably help take care of that. They're only a few alleys down. Can you walk?" Bido asked.

She tried to get up but bit her lip to hold back a scream and shook her head.

"I'll go get them and bring them to you then. I'll be right back." he said.

"You don't have to go to that much trouble for my sake." she mumbled in pain.

Bido clearly wasn't listening as he began to scale the wall across from them like a lizard.

"Wait. Before you go, what's your name?" she asked.

"I'm Bido."

"Bido? Okay. Nice to meet you. I'm Elyza."

Bido smiled again. "I'll be right back, Miss Elyza." He said as he crawled up the wall and disappeared.

It didn't take long for Bido to reach the Devil's Nest. When he got there, he hurried in and ran to Greed who was in the process of lighting a cigarette.

"Mr. Greed! Mr. Greed!" he cried out as he got him.

The bar's owner took a long draw off his cigarette then blew a well-practiced smoke ring just over Bido's head before looking down at the little hybrid.

"Oh, there you are, Bido. I was wondering where you were." he chuckled.

"My friend, Miss Elyza, she's in an alleyway near here. She's hurt badly. Some soldiers attacked her. She's losing a lot of blood." the lizard man said in one long breath.

Greed's eye widened into a curious expression.

"You said soldiers attacked a young woman? That's a little interesting. Say, can you take me to see your little friend please?" he said as he flickered his ashes into a nearby ashtray.

"Does that mean you're going to help her?" Bido asked hopefully.

"I can't just let this poor kid bleed to death in an alley. That's just cruel. Dolcetto, you coming?" Greed replied.

"Yeah. I'll go. I'm a little curious about what kind of girl getting attacked by the military." Dolcetto said as he walked up behind Greed.

"Lead the way, Bido." Greed said.

Bido smiled widely. "Follow me." 

The other two men followed him to where Bido had left Elyza. There in the alleyway was something that none of them expected. What appeared to be a giant bush made from metal had been erected around the girl who was lying in a pool of her own blood and seemed to be unconscious as well. Bido started crying a little and Dolcetto shook his head in disgust. Greed walked over to the metal bars slowly. As he walked up to the maze of metal bars, he began to study it a little.

"Bido, was she like this when you found her?"

"No, sir. She was just sitting there when I left. They must have done it." 

"I don't think so. If they roughed her that badly then they won't have just trapped her." Dolcetto said.

"I think she did it. The markings on her bracelets sorta look like transmutation circles. Plus, this was made to protect her. There are even thorns on it so if someone tried to grab her out of here, they'd just about cut their damn arm off." Greed said. "We can ask her later. First things first, let's make sure she doesn't die."

He hardened up the shield on his hands and pulled a few of the bars apart so that he could knell beside her and check her pulse.

"Good. She's not dead yet. Hey, doll, can you hear me?"

She groaned under her breath.

"We're gonna take you back with us and get you all fixed up, okay? Tighten your hand into a fist if you understood that."

Her skinny fingers slightly curled up and Greed nodded before dismissing his shield.

"Good girl. Now, stay still so I don't drop you. This might hurt." he said as he put his arms under her and lifted her up.

She screamed in agony and Bido shuttered at the sound of his new friend's pain.

"Come on, guys. Let's go." Greed said as he started walking.

As they continued back to the Devil's Nest, Elyza rested her head on Greed's chest. He didn't pay much attention to as he talked to the others until Dolcetto laughed.

"I think she's already taken a liking to you, boss."

Greed looked down to see that the young woman was cuddled up to his chest and looked more asleep than out cold now. He laughed and looked at his half-dog friend.

"Don't act so surprised. You know I have a way with women."

"Whatever you say." Dolcetto laughed as he rolled his eyes.

When they returned, Greed unhooked her bracelets and put them in her pockets. He also unhooked a small leather belt that had two silver pistols on it and sat it on the bar on the other side of the room. The other came into the room and began trying to repair her wound and Greed headed outside to smoke again.

"Let me know when she wakes up." he called as the door closed behind him.

After about two hours, Elyza began to stir. As she awoke, she tried to sit up, but her soreness was too much, and she groaned in pain loudly. Dolcetto came into the room and smiled.

"Oh good. You're finally awake. He has been waiting for you to get up. Hey, Greed!"

"Seriously? What kind of a name is that?" she whispered to herself.

Greed came in and Dolcetto left. Elyza looked up as the stranger studied her for a moment. She had large blue eyes and chestnut hair that hung past her shoulders and was straight. The ocean of onyx strands was tucked behind her ears on both sides. Her eyelashes were thick and long. Her tan skin looked like the sun had kissed it daily. Her lips were full and pink. She didn't look so close to death and he began to admire that she was actually rather pretty.

She had a blanket thrown over her and a second blanket was rolled up behind her head as a pillow.

"Where are my bracelets? What's going on?" she demanded.

He pulled the missing bracelets out of his pockets and held them up. She growled under her breath and tried to snatch them out of his hand but only managed to hurt herself more.

"Calm down there, doll face. I'll answer your questions and I'll give these back to you. First, I have some questions of my own."

"Like what?"

"Like why would the military sic their dogs on an innocent little girl like you?"

"Long story. Basically, I pulled a little prank on them and they're pissy about it. Granted, I stole my superior's car to do it. Still think they're overreacting though." she scoffed as she shrugged her shoulders.

"Damn. Looks like I had you all wrong. You're not innocent at all. You're just a little badass, huh?" Greed laughed.

"That life just didn't match up to my goals." she said.

"Did you make that metal bush around yourself?"

"Of course, I did. I was a State Alchemist after all."

"That's what I thought. Nice work by the way."

"Thanks." she said, looking him up and down curiously.

"So, what now?"

"Hell, I don't know. Can't exactly go home over the stunt that I pulled. " she said.

"Tell you what. I could use a skilled little woman like you around here and you want a home, right?" He asked, a smirk growing on his face.

"Yeah?"

"How about this? You stay here and work for me and in exchange, I'll let you live here and make sure those dogs stay off your back. You'll have your safehouse and I'll have my alchemist. Everyone wins."

"Now, hold on. Who said that I plan on working for anyone? I'm not the follower type, pretty boy, and I don't need anyone bossing me around. I have my own goals and I don't want anyone getting in my way!" she said as she sat up.

The blanket fell to reveal several layers of thick white bandages that started just above her breast and went all the way down to her waist. A deep blush covered her face and she threw her arms around herself protectively. He started laughing and she instinctively went to clap her hands for a transmutation but quickly realized how fruitless that would be.

"Sorry about the shirt. We couldn't bandage a wound that we couldn't see. Like I said, doll, I'll replace your shirt and return your things."

"Your friends call you Greed." she said. "What's your real name?"

He chuckled. "Believe it or not, that is my real name. You see, I'm not your average guy." He held up his hand to reveal a red Ouroboros tattoo. "I'm a homunculus."

"You expect me to believe that? No one has ever made a successful homunculus." she hissed.

Without another word, Greed retrieved a knife from the bar, returned to where she was sitting, and smirked at her. He shoved the blade into his hand and out the other side. Elyza's eyes widened as what looked like red lightening swarmed his hand and the hole closed.

"You're amazing." she gasped softly.

He burst into a fit of laughter and she looked at him confused.

"Sorry, it's just that I was expecting fear, not admiration. You're such got a lot of moxie, kiddo." Greed said.

"I've never scared easily. But being a homunculus doesn't explain that colorful name."

"That's simple. I'm the living embodiment of avarice. I'm greedy. You see, I want everything. I want money and power, woman and sex, status and glory! I want everything! This entire world is my possession!"

Elyza smirked and leaned forward.

"Well, you and I aren't so different after all. The one and only reason that I joined the military as a state alchemist was to obtain most of that stuff. You see, I'm tired of having nothing. I want it all too. Money, power, sex, status, and glory all sound wonderful to me!" she said.

He started clapping his hands and chuckling loudly. "You are the most avaricious little thing I have ever seen! Now that's my kind of woman! I might just keep you by my side for company. You are just a little peach!"

Elyza looked pleased with his compliment. "So, you really want me to stay?"

"Sure. I've explained my reasons. I can't really force you though. As a little rule of mine, I don't fight women."

"Who knew homunculi were so charming."

"Not all, but I suppose I've always been a bit of a black sheep." he said with a smirk. "So, what's your story, kiddo? I've spilled my guts all over. I'd like to hear about my newest little addition."

"Haven't accepted your offer yet, pretty boy, but I don't mind telling you a little information about myself since you did tell yours. I'm Elyza Forte and until recently, I was also known as the Silver Petal Alchemist. I was born here in Dublith, just another little street thug. Then I went to Central, became a State Alchemist, and everything was fine until the war started." she replied.

He smirked and went to sit behind her. He pulled her bracelets out of his pocket, placed them into her hand, and closed it into a fist. Then he removed his vest and draped it over her shoulders. She looked up in shock but he merely smirked.

"Working for me isn't like working for the military. I don't tie a ball and chain to your ankle and shout orders all day long. No, you'll just be laying around most of the time with me. You can do as you please. Just give me a heads up when you go somewhere so I'll know when to send a search party out for you."

"I only have one request." Elyza said.

"What about that be?"

"Don't leave me in the dust. If I'm loyal and helpful to you, then I want you to value me." she said.

"You prove your worth and I'll respect it, alright? Do I have my alchemist?" he said, holding out his hand to her.

"We have a deal, Greed." 

Their hands collided with a deal affirming clap. A smirk quickly ran across his face like a fire on a fuse.

"Alright. Welcome to the Devil's Nest, babe. Now, let's go talk to my chimera." he said as he stood up.

"Chimera?" she asked.

"You know what those are, right?"

"Animal and human hybrids? Guessing Bido is one with that tail."

"Yep. He's part lizard. The runt that was in here when you woke up is the family pet. His name is Dolcetto and he's part dog. You haven't met Roa and Martel yet. She's part snake and he's part cow. We have a crocodile too." Greed said with a little pride in his voice.

"You just have a whole zoo, don't you?" Elyza laughed.

"You really don't scare easily."

"I told you so."

Dolcetto came into the room with Bido behind him. The lizard chimera's eyes lit up and a smile appeared on his face.

"Miss Elyza! You're okay!" he said happily.

"Yeah and I've been talking to your boss man over here. You guys have a new roommate." she laughed.

"Nice to meet you, Elyza. I'm Dolcetto."

"Greed says that you're the family pet. My mom wouldn't let me have a dog so I'm sorry if I don't really know how to keep you entrained."

Dolcetto shot Greed the evilest look that he could but the homunculus simply laughed. Martel and Roa came into the room as well.

"We overheard the conversation. No need to repeat yourself." Roa said.

"Greed's never been very good at whispering." Martel said with a smile.

"Good to have you, Elyza." Roa said.

She nodded then put her arms through the armholes in Greed's vest before standing up slowly.

"So, what's first, boss?" she asked the homunculus in front of her.

"Look at you. Just a few hours of downtime and you're suddenly ready to get back in the game."

"I'm not very useful on the couch."

"You can relax for a while. You have 3 bullets hole in you and a huge gash in your side. You don't need to be moving a lot. By the way, I need that vest back."

"Too bad. You ruined my shirt. When I get a new shirt, you can have this back, big boy."

It was too big for her and was falling off her shoulders.

"Listen, you can't just come in here and steal my clothes." he laughed.

"Equivalent exchange, pretty boy. I get a shirt and you get your vest."

"You're a crafty little monster, huh? Okay, Miss Elyza. Let's play. Martel and Dolcetto, see if you can find a shirt for this crazy woman." Greed said.

"Alright. Be back in a minute." Martel said as she went out the door.

"Man, now he's got us shopping." Dolcetto complained as he followed.

"Fair warning, I do tend to get a little handsy when I'm around a girl that my avarice desires. I hope it don't scare you."

"Don't kid yourself. But if you plan on being overly friendly, can I have my weapons back?"

"Later." he said as he took another drag from his cigarette.

"You said you'd give them back." she growled.

"And I will. I didn't say when I would, now did I? I don't tell lies. You'll have them back, but you don't need them right now."

She crossed her arms and looked away.

"Come on, doll face. Smile a little." Greed said.

Those rosy lips turned up ever so slightly.

"There we go! That's better. Now, why don't you go back to sleep for a while and let some of that soreness wore off? You're still limping, and I noticed you frowning every time you moved. Go ahead and catch up on your sleep."

She seemed hesitant so he smiled before holding up the hand with his Ouroboros tattoo on it. Suddenly his skin began to turn charcoal and his fingers became claws. She looked shocked. The charcoal color stopped at his wrist and his tattoo was still visible.

"This is my ultimate shield. It's harder than diamond and my claws can cut through most anything. You belong to me now and no one is gonna mess with you. Go to sleep if you want to, okay?" he said.

"Thank you, Greed." she said softly.

Greed blew some smoke into the air and looked away.

"Don't mention it. Like I said, you belong to me now." he said.

Before falling asleep completely, she looked up at the ceiling. "Hey, Greed?"

"You're supposed to be sleeping."

"I just wanted to say that you have my complete loyalty. I'll do whatever you need me to do. I'll even die for you if I have to." she said.

"Okay. I'll keep that in mind. Now, get some rest." He said back.

Elyza fell asleep rather quickly and he watched her for a moment as she slept.

"Die for me, huh?" he said as he put out his cigarette. "What a heart of gold to want to die for a monster. I just kinda hope that we don't have to test that. You're a pretty cool girl."


	2. The Boy in the Tin Can

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Devil's Nest crew met Alphonse Elric

Elyza stretched her arms over her head as Martel sat her glass of whiskey back down on the counter. The Devil's Nest was lacking the parties that usually lit up the entire building. The main room was only occupied by the flexible snake chimera behind the bar and her hot-tempered friend sitting on the countertop. Elyza recently dyed her hair pink to avoid military attention. It was also a big middle finger to her conservative parents. It was the color of cotton candy and it made her wide, sapphire eyes pop like diamonds.

"Jeez, I hate Sundays. There's nothing to do." the alchemist complained.

"I know. I was planning on sleeping in today, but you know how Greed is."

"If he's up, _everyone _has to be up. That man needs a hobby."__

__"Pretty sure that we _are _the hobby, Ely." she laughed.___ _

____Dolcetto came into the main room, seeming to be in a hurry. He had his sword with him which was certainly reason enough for Elyza to jump down from her perch._ _ _ _

____"Change of plans, guys. The note that we wrote for the Elric kid worked like a charm. Just got word that he's headed this way." he informed them._ _ _ _

____"So, what's so damn special about this Alphonse kid anyway?" Elyza asked as she retrieved her guns from behind the bar._ _ _ _

____"Honestly, I don't have a clue but if the boss wants him here, -."_ _ _ _

____"I know, I know. Boss gets what he wants. You forget that I'm one of the main people who make that happen." she scoffed._ _ _ _

____"Hey, no one's gonna deny that." Martel laughed as she walked up next to Elyza. "Everyone here knows that Greed couldn't pull off half of his crazy plans without you."_ _ _ _

____"And they say that dogs are man's best friend." she smirked, cutting her eyes at Dolcetto who huffed at her in annoyance before heading to the front door._ _ _ _

____After taking their places, Elyza groaned deeply. "Any word when boss man will be back?"_ _ _ _

____"He said it would take two hours." Roa replied._ _ _ _

____"Why do I get the feeling that he's not really keeping time?" Martel laughed._ _ _ _

____Elyza scoffed. "Well, he's not gonna be back in time, maybe we should just -."_ _ _ _

____Dolcetto sniffed the air and sat forward. "He's here."_ _ _ _

____"Of course, he is." she sighed flatly._ _ _ _

____They pounced down to the ground and Elyza approached the suit of armor with a smirk._ _ _ _

____"Are you the person who wrote this note? About knowing my secret?" the metal man asked._ _ _ _

____She laughed lightly. "Oh no, my handwriting is terrible. I doubt you could read it. But you did come to the right place."_ _ _ _

____"Part of me hopes that you're telling the truth because that means you guys know something about me that I don't."_ _ _ _

____"You seem like a reasonable young man. How about we help each other out? We need some information and you look super bored. Why don't you come with us?"_ _ _ _

____"My teacher says that I shouldn't go with strangers."_ _ _ _

____Elyza chuckled and shook her head. "That's very good advice and I wish I didn't have to get you in trouble with your teacher. However, if I don't get you inside this bar, my boss will be furious. See, it's my job not to let him down."_ _ _ _

____"Well, I wish I didn't have to get _you _in trouble with your boss but I'm not planning on going into that bar with any of you." Al replied.___ _ _ _

______Elyza reached behind her back slowly and wrapped her hand around the handle on one of her silver pistols. "Look, kid, I don't want this to turn into a fight. I promise we're good people. We don't have to fight."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"If you plan on making me do something that I don't want to, then I don't think we're going to get along."_ _ _ _ _ _

______She closed her eyes and sighed once more. "I was afraid of that. I just wish you'd be more flexible. Then I wouldn't have to do this."_ _ _ _ _ _

______By the time Al got into his fighting stance, Elyza pulled out the pistol and shot a bullet directly at his head. It knocked the helmet from his shoulders, and he felt someone grab his shoulders. Martel took over the attack at this point and slithered into his metal frame._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Ew, ew, ew! Get out of there! That's so weird!" Al cried._ _ _ _ _ _

______"You just stay still and let me do my job, alright?" Martel purred._ _ _ _ _ _

______"You're not strong enough to hold me still!" the boy shouted as he tried to struggle against her._ _ _ _ _ _

______"She doesn't need to be." Roa, the ox chimera, replied from behind him._ _ _ _ _ _

______He twisted one of the steel arms and forced his opponent to the ground._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Shit, babe, you okay there?" Elyza asked as she cringed at the thought of Martel's unfortunate head bouncing off the armor._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Oh, peachy." she hissed back sarcastically._ _ _ _ _ _

______"What are you people?" the echoing voice from in the armor demanded._ _ _ _ _ _

______"They're my gang and I'd say they did a damn good job for once." Greed said from behind them._ _ _ _ _ _

______"About time your lazy ass made it back here." Elyza huffed._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Now, Ely, you know the boss doesn't do the dirty work. They give the orders. Like, 'take him inside for me.'" he replied coyly._ _ _ _ _ _

______As the others started to haul their catch inside, the young alchemist rolled her eyes and crossed her arms._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Are you waiting for me to say please, doll? Cause we'll be here a while." he asked, lighting a cigarette._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Greed, I'll be honest. I have a bad feeling about this little plan of yours."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"You and those bad feelings." he scoffed with an eye roll._ _ _ _ _ _

______"How often are they wrong? Like that heist last week when Bido nearly broke his leg? I have a sixth sense for this crap!"_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Ely, this is just a kid! Pretty sure Big and Shiny in there is fourteen at the oldest? Are you telling me that you think that some kid can beat an entire team of chimeras and my talented state alchemist?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______" _Former _State Alchemist, Greed!"___ _ _ _ _ _

________"I know, I know. But seriously, what could possibly go wrong?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She looked away and mumbled, "I don't know."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Exactly, so stop your worrying. I have this under control."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________With that, he headed and Elyza sighed deeply before following him into the backroom. She perched herself on a crate as Greed approached the armor and peered inside._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Cool! You're actually hallow! Hi, Martel. You comfortable in there?" He laughed as Martel, who was still in the suit looked up at him in an annoyed expression._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"What do you guys want from me?" Al asked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"My name's Greed and I want to be your friend." Greed said as he turned to walk away._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Al scoffed. "Then why don't you tell me what you people really are."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"What?" Greed asked, looking over his shoulder._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I heard what you said outside. You're not chimeras. It's impossible. No one's made a chimera that can talk."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Impossible?" Elyza laughed. "Damn, it's been ages since the last time I heard that word!"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"You can't believe everything the military tells you, kid. Isn't that right?" Greed said, looking over his shoulder at Elyza._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She scoffed and ran her fingers through her pastel hair. "You can say that again."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"The girl you got in there should be proof enough. She's mixed with a snake. The big guy behind me is...," the homunculus said, snapping his fingers to try and jog his memory. "Damn, I'm just not all here today."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Come on, old man. Think harder." Elyza called out playfully._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Hey, respect your elders, Ely!" he laughed back. "Wait, I got it! It's a cow, right?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Yeah." Roa mumbled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"We've got a lizard and a crocodile, too. " Greed continued._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"The little runt with the sword and the scowl is the family pet." Elyza added._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Family pet, my ass, Ely!" Dolcetto shouted._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"You're part dog?" Al asked in wonderment._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Yep. It's really not so bad."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Except for the dog jokes that we make at him all day." Elyza giggled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Yeah... That part kinda sucks." he chuckled with a smirk as he rolled his eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I don't believe it. " Al said softly. "What about you?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Who? Me?" Elyza said, pointing at herself._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Yeah. What did they make you with?" Al said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I'm not a chimera, kiddo. I'm an alchemist." she replied._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"She definitely fits in around here. Her hatred for the military, expert combat skills, and hot temper make her a fun little addition." Greed said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Is she the person who made your chimera?" Al asked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Nah, she tends to just stick to metal-based alchemy. She makes me some really wicked swords though."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Then where did they come from?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"The military." Greed said simply._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"You mean...?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"That's right. There's a whole lot of things that are hidden in the shadows. You just gotta know where to look and who to ask. But they're not even the rarest thing here." Greed said holding up his hand to reveal his Ouroboros tattoo._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I'm a homunculus." Greed said. "You know what that means, right? I'm an artificially created human." he said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Al gasped in shock. "That's impossible."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"There's that word again." Elyza laughed softly._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Seriously. No joke." Greed said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"No, a homunculus is just a theory. No one has ever made one!" Al yelled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Greed stood up and took off his sunglasses._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"I guess I gotta prove it."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Roa suddenly swung his giant hammer and knocked the top part of Greed's head completely off. Blood splattered everywhere and Greed hit the floor. Elyza screamed unintentionally and Al looked at Roa._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Why did you do that to him?" Al asked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Greed's decapitated body held up one finger and rose from the ground. His skull, muscles, and skin returned layer by layer before he popped his neck and spit out a little blood. He held up one finger and chuckled under his breath._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"That's once I've died."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"No way." Al said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"You get it yet? There's no such thing as 'no such thing'. I'm a little surprised that you would have such a hard time accepting that since you're just a soul bonded to a suit of armor."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Who told you that?" Al said in shocked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Oh, people like to talk in the shadow world, and I have plenty of friends. But I'm curious about what a body that can't die at all would be like."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Boss!" Martel interrupted._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Greed looked over his shoulder to see that Elyza's tan skin was a pale green color and she looked weak._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Hey, grab her before she topples off that crate." Greed said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She almost fell off it before Dolcetto could grab her. He sat her on the floor, and she closed her eyes. Greed looked back at Al for a moment._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Hold that thought. I have a little issue back here that I gotta handle." he said before walking over to her and kneeling down to her._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She didn't look up, but he grabbed her hand and put it on his cheek. "Look, it's fine. Come on. Get back up." he said. "It's not like my little alchemist to be so sensitive."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Don't talk down to me or I'll show you sensitive, you jerk." she mumbled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"There we go! There's that spunk that keeps us all going."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He used the hand that was on his cheek to pull her up onto her feet before walking back to Al and kneeling to his level again. Elyza walked up behind him but still seemed shaken. Her hands were trembling even though her skin was returning to natural color. She was giving herself a half-hearted embrace to hide her hands shaking._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Next time, someone cover her eyes, please?" Greed requested._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"There won't be a next time! Knocking your own damn head off isn't a damn hobby, Boss!" she said, punching his shoulder._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He rubbed the sore spot and glanced up at her. "Damn, you hit like a guy! It'll regenerate, doll, so just relax"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She appeared rather disgusted by his comment and turned away. He rolled his eyes at her and looked back at Al._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Sorry about that. She's a pain in the ass. Anyway, let's get back on track here, alright? How _did _you get that body?" Greed said.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"Just make this easy on yourself and tell him. Unless you'd rather be examined, which means we'll have to take you apart." Martel added. "Trust me, there's no way that he'll figure out which leg is which before next week."_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"He'll probably make me do it." Elyza huffed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"I wish I could tell you... That would mean I know how I got it. But even if I could remember, I'm not the one who did the transmutation." Al said._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________"That's okay. I'll just ask the person who did." Greed said, pointing at him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Was he bluffing or did he really know about Ed? How did he know that? How much did these people know and how did they find all this out? Al wasn't sure what to expect... but he had a bad feeling about this._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	3. The Unwelcome Guest

"Why don't you just let me handle it? I'm an alchemist too. I don't know much about bio-alchemy but he's technically metal. I could figure it out." Elyza said. 

"This isn't exactly your forte, doll. You can't do something like this." Greed said. After a second, he looked up and smirked. "See what I did there? Forte?" 

She turned her head the other direction and he sighed. 

"You're no fun today. You still mad about the whole hammer thing, aren't you?" 

She scoffed and looked away more. 

"You need to lighten up, Ely." he said, flicking her ponytail playfully. 

She continued to ignore him until the door was burst open. Elyza grit her teeth as a short, small boy who was probably in his teens came into the room. She reached for one of her guns, but Greed shot her a look out of the corner of his eye that told her to wait. She crossed her arms as she growled softly. 

"Never thought you could get kidnapped." he said. 

"Brother, this guy's a homunculus!" Al said. 

"Are you serious?" 

"Hey! Way to ruin it!" Greed shouted in a slightly pouting tone that surprisingly managed to get a genuine smile from the annoyed Elyza. 

"You might be able to get some information from him on how to get our original bodies back." Al said. 

Greed stepped in front of Al and held up his Ouroboros tattoo while smirking. 

"An Ouroboros tattoo." Ed said blankly. 

"Aren't you observant? I was hoping that I'd only have to deal with the little armored giant." Greed said. 

"Why don't you just ask your partners whatever you want to know?" Ed asked. 

"Partners?" Greed asked, a little confused and amazed. 

"Yeah, the rest of the Ouroboros gang from the Fifth Lab. They had some armor with souls bonded to them as well." 

"You don't say." Greed replied as his eyes got a little wide and he perked up a little. "Well, we don't have time for the story, but I don't really talk to them much these days." 

Elyza wrinkled her nose with confusion. She knew there were other homunculi, but Greed never told her that he knew them personally. What else didn't she know? 

"I've got a little deal for you. You guys are pretty desperate to get your bodies back, right?" Greed said. "Because I could teach you to fabricate your own homunculus in no time at all. All I ask in return is that you teach me how to transmute a soul. Classic equivalent exchange." 

Elyza caught herself smiling a little. She'd never admit it, but she loved it when he used alchemy terminology like that. It showed how much time they'd spent together. 

"But I don't know why you'd even want your old body back." Greed chuckled. 

Ed's fist tightened by his sides. "What did you say?" 

"It seems like he's got one that's perfect already." 

"No, I don't!" Al yelled. 

"You're joking, right? You don't have to eat, you don't have to sleep, you don't even need to use the toilet! Sounds great to me." Greed laughed. 

"That's enough." Ed said in a low tone. "Shut your damn mouth!" 

"Sounds great to you?! It seems perfect?! You don't anything about the hell he's had to go through trapped in that body! And you wanna know how to transmute a soul? You kidnap my brother and you wanna trade secrets with me?!" he ranted. "I'm gonna crush you creeps! There won't any equivalent exchange with you scum!" he continued. 

Greed started clapping slowly and the others stared at the teen in amazement. Dolcetto began to pull out his sword. 

"I guess we're doing this by force again." he said as he walked forward. 

"In case you haven't noticed, Fido, your track record sucks lately. Let me take this one." Elyza said, stepping in front of her friend. 

"No killing him, got it?" Greed said. 

"No promises." she said as she cracked her knuckles and took out one of her knives. 

"Come on then." Ed said, getting impatient. "I don't have all day to play with you freaks." 

She hissed under her breath in rage as she flicked her hands down so that her charms fell into her palms. She then slammed her hands together before doing a back flip over him and landing with her palms on the ground. A giant concrete hand came from the floor and grabbed his leg. The large appendage then slung him across the room and into a wall. 

"You're an alchemist?" he wheezed. 

"That's right. I studied under Roy Mustang and Alex Louis Armstrong personally." she said with a smirk as she put her hand on her hip. 

"You mean you were a State Alchemist?" Ed asked in shock. 

"You're not as dumb as you look, huh? Now are you going to cooperate with us, or do you need a little more sweet talking?" she said. 

Ed got up and checked his auto-mail to see if it was alright. Then he clapped his hands and touched the ground. Large spikes erupted from the floor and Elyza gasped in surprise. 

"You don't use a transmutation circle! But how is that possible?" she said as she barely avoided the spikes. 

Quickly, Ed ambushed her from the side and his hand sword cut into her side. The wound of the military guards attacking her those few years ago ripped open and she screamed in agony before covering her side. 

"You bastard! I’ll kill you!" she screamed at blood poured from her side. 

"Alright. That's enough. Guys, get the armor kid out of here. I guess we'll just dismantle him. Doll, go ahead on with the others for now." Greed said, stepping in front of Elyza who was doubled over in pain. 

Roa picked up Al and threw him over his shoulder. Dolcetto grabbed Elyza's arm but she pulled against his grip. 

"Put him down!" Ed yelled as he rushed toward them with his hand sword ready to stab someone 

Greed threw his hand up with his shield hardened up to his wrist. The sword hit the shield and stopped moving forward along with the alchemist attached to it. 

Ed pulled his arm back and tried to try another attack on Greed, but the homunculus merely smacked the move away with his claws and smirked. Ed swung for him again, but Greed ducked under it and threw his own attack. Ed knocked it away and managed to block the second attack by sheer miracle. 

Roa had already left with Al. Dolcetto had attempted to drag Elyza out of the room but after a while she broke his grip. 

"Let's go now." Dolcetto said. 

"Not until I tear that kid's head off!" Elyza screamed. 

"Greed said to leave! He'll handle it!" Dolcetto said. 

"I have a bad feeling about all this crap and I'm not leaving him alone with that brat!" she shouted, yanking away from him. 

The sound of metal pinging against Greed's shield continued as Dolcetto and Elyza stared at each other in anger. 

She sighed softly, "Look, it's our job to deal with these things and I have Greed my word that I'd be at his side. I might be the best liar in Dublith when I feel like it, but you guys are exceptions. I protect my own." 

"Fine. Go back. Just don't yourself too badly hurt, okay?" Dolcetto said, now less angry and more concerned. 

"I won't. Keep the others safe for me and be careful please." she said softly. 

"You bet, Ely. I see you on the other side, alright?" Dolcetto said, with a smile as he patted her shoulder tenderly. 

They shared an anxious embrace before he ran to catch up with the others. Elyza ran back to the Devil's Nest. When she arrived, she investigated the room and saw that Greed had his full body shield hardened. She covered her mouth. She'd only seen Greed's shield all the way hardened once before. He never used it. 

Abruptly, spikes erupted to the ground once more and hit Greed's stomach. It was clear that it had broken through the shield somehow and Greed doubled over in pain as his blood spilled onto the floor. 

"What the hell did you do to my shield?" he asked softly as he coughed. 

"It's actually pretty simple once you think about it. You may be a homunculus, but you really shouldn't have told me that your body was human since that means that a third of it is carbon. The hardness of carbon varies depending on how the atoms are arranged so it's obvious that's what your shield is made of. Once I had that figured out, the rest is simple alchemy." Ed said with a smirk. 

Elyza clenched her fists. How dare this little runt invade their home and hurt her loved ones! He was nothing but trouble. Greed ordered her not to kill him, but she was breaking her promise if she didn't. Rage burned inside her as Greed stood up and healed before his shield covered his sides again. 

"I'm glad to hear it. It's no fun if it's not a challenge!" Greed yelled as he charged him and threw a punch. 

Ed caught Greed's fist and ducked down. He performed an alchemic reaction on Greed's side. 

"And there's one other important thing I noticed." Ed said as he slammed his auto-mail into Greed's weak point. "You can't harden your shield and heal at the same time!" 

Elyza's eyes widened as Greed stumbled backward away from him. Her temper hit the ceiling. She grabbed one of her guns and fired it at the young alchemist. It hit his arm and he grabbed it in pain. He looked at his arm and then up. Unexpectedly, the floor under him began to rise and a foot came from nowhere to kick him in the face. He hit the ground hard and she pinned him to the ground by his wrists. 

"Keep your hands off my boss!" she roared, baring her teeth like a feral animal. 

"Your bad feelings acting up again?" Greed asked as he stood up groggily. 

"Still think that I'm wrong?" 

"I'm quickly becoming a believer." he groaned as his wounds healed themselves. 

Ed suddenly kneed Elyza's open wound and she fell off him with a shout of agony as even more blood began to run down her side. With her backed up, Ed managed to get to his feet again. 

"You two really should pay attention to your surroundings." the blonde alchemist huffed. 

"You're going to regret the moment you walked through that door." Elyza hissed back. 

"You shouldn't have messed with my brother." 

Both alchemists started to move toward what would undoubtedly be violent conflict when the door behind them burst open and a woman hurled one of Greed's more sizable henchmen at Ed. 

"Sorry to come up uninvited like this." she said. 

He sat back up and groaned. "Teacher? What are you doing here? 

"Getting you two idiots back where you belong! Do you think it's okay to just leave my broom lying in the road? Answer me!" the woman yelled. 

"No! I'm so sorry!" 

"Ugh, can you please take your overbearing mom routine somewhere else?" Elyza scoffed, crossing her arms. 

"Thanks for your hospitably. He can always use more exercise." 

"Be careful. That guy is a -!" Ed warned. 

"Yes, yes. I heard. You two aren't exactly quiet." the woman replied. 

"Don't try to start anything. I don't really like fighting women." Greed drawled. 

Izumi took a step forward toward the homunculus. Before her foot touched the ground completely, a stone pillar ripped from the floor and struck her in the stomach with tremendous force. 

"Teacher!" Edward called out. 

“Get out of here, Boss. I can handle this.” Elyza said. 

“Don’t take too long. Looks like you’ll get your chance to work on the metal kid after all.” the homunculus said as he ran off. 

“Give me five minutes.” she hissed, staring at Ed darkly. 

The woman clapped her hands and destructed the pillar. She fell onto her knees and gasped for air as blood poured from her mouth. 

"You don't use a circle either?" Elyza whispered. 

Izumi clapped her hands again and slammed her palms to the ground. The earth beneath Elyza rose and began to wrap itself around her. Elyza clapped her charms together and grabbed the side of the hallow column the earth was making. Her alchemy caused it to shatter violently, sending debris at the other alchemists. As they shielded their faces, Elyza ran out the door. 

“They ran away? How cowardly.” Izumi scoffed before coughing up more blood. 

“Teacher, take it easy.” Ed said, grabbing her arm to steady here 

Elyza ran as hard as she could to find her protector and friends, but three military men came from behind a corner and pointed their guns at her. “Elyza Forte, you’re under arrest from the thief of a car registered to Solf J. Kimblee.” The alchemist blew a puff of air up in frustration, “Oh, peachy.”


End file.
